Amid an expanded Israeli military (IDF) ground operation, which has again seen Rafah surrounded, Hamas is signaling that it’s ready to release all remaining Israeli hostages in exchange for a permanent ceasefire.
A Thursday Times of Israel report cited a senior Palestinian official who described that Israel has had a “longstanding rejection” of such a deal, which is why Hamas has so far offered a phased release approach; however, negotiations are at a “standstill” as the IDF has moved to a military solution.
Israel has reportedly countered by asking Hamas to release eleven hostages, but with no commitment this would lead to permanent ceasefire talks.
“While Netanyahu signed onto the deal, he has long rejected the latter two clauses of phase two, arguing they would allow Hamas to remain in power,” the report observes. “Accordingly, he has largely refused to hold talks regarding phase two of the deal, which were supposed to begin on February 2.”
The senior Palestinian official sourced in the Israeli media report said, “The number of hostages is not the issue. If Israel demonstrates its intention to reach a permanent ceasefire, [Hamas is] prepared to release all of the hostages.”
“Israel only wants a partial agreement so that it can continue fighting. It wants [Hamas] to give up all the hostages without entering the second phase,” the official claimed.
Hellbound and Down 